Deck 11: Ethics and Police

Question 1

The textbook uses the term semiprofessional professionals to refer to:

A) police
B) correctional officers
C) probation officers
D) parole officers

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Police shootings of citizens and stop and frisk actions have led to which criticism(s) of police?

A) police are corrupt
B) police are racist
C) police are ineffective in fighting crime
D) all of the above

Answer 2

B

Question 3

According to the text, the most problematic task facing the police in a free society is:

A) the controversy between freedom, privacy, and social control
B) the political pressure to fix all wrongs
C) underpaid and undertrained personnel
D) inadequate technology

Answer 3

A

Question 4

The view that the police have an "impossible mandate" means that:

A) officers must fight crime to keep the peace.
B) officers serve the community but also use force when necessary.
C) officers have discretion to make decisions in difficult situations that render those decisions questionable.
D) all of the above

Question 5

According to the text, the citizen's fear of the police includes all of the following except:

A) physical fear
B) anticipatory fear
C) imaginary fear
D) escape fear

Question 6

According to the text, which of the following is a sociologically oriented factor that explains why police officers may not be committed to democratic principles?

A) Police officers are mostly employed at a young age.
B) Most police officers belong to lower-middle-class households.
C) Many rookies are hired soon after they complete military service which may lead to a rigid style of thinking.
D) All of the above

Question 7

In the section on democratic principles, the text stated that the "summon bonum of a civilized society" is:

A) the dignity of man
B) individualism
C) equality
D) government

Question 8

According to the text, democratic theory assumes that most of the people:

A) are self-motivated
B) know their own interests
C) have enough sense to recognize another person's interests
D) all of the above

Question 9

Sociological definitions of police corruption primarily focus on the arbitrary use of what?

A) power
B) equality
C) deception
D) technology

Question 10

Which of the following is not a criticism of asset forfeiture?

A) It pressures police to focus on drug crimes.
B) It is unethical to seize assets from criminals.
C) Sometimes police go too far and seize assets from innocent people.
D) Sometimes money in a car does not belong to the driver.

Question 11

Which of the following is false about the war on drugs?

A) It led to arrests and prison for hundreds of thousands of men and women.
B) It is not cheap but costs billions of dollars.
C) It does not raise ethical issues for the police; police should simply enforce drug laws no matter what.
D) Part of the problem is the United States has conflicting views on drug use.

Question 12

Which Supreme Court decision authorized police to stop and frisk persons based on reasonable suspicion of possible criminal activity?

A) Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)
B) Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
C) Tinker v. Des Moines (1969)
D) Terry v. Ohio (1968)

Question 13

Which of the following is false concerning police actions?

A) A majority of blacks think that police are too quick to use lethal force.
B) A majority of whites think that police are too quick to use lethal force.
C) According to a Washington Post report on police shootings a few years ago, more whites than black were victims of such shootings.
D) none of the above

Question 14

Which of the following is a shortcoming of a stop and frisk approach to policing?

A) Disproportionate targeting of minorities
B) A sizable number of stops are made without reasonable suspicion
C) Stops rarely result in finding drugs or guns
D) All of the above

Question 15

Which of the following is a cost of police corruption?

A) Corruption is a type of "secret tax" on businesses.
B) Corruption undermines the principle of the rule of law.
C) It robs officers of their self-respect.
D) all of the above

Question 16

Goldstein contended which of the following forms of corruption often begins a "slippery slope of a moral career?"

A) gratuities
B) theft
C) sexual misconduct
D) burglary

Question 17

Which of the following is not an example of obligatory corruption?

A) illegal searches or arrests
B) not issuing a ticket to a fellow police officer.
C) stealing money from a crime scene
D) making an illegal stop and frisk

Question 18

Skolnick suggests police view the use of deception least acceptable during which of the following stages of the detection process?

A) interrogation
B) testimony in court
C) investigation
D) arrest

Question 19

Related to police shootings, which of the following refers to when police are reluctant to intervene in situations for fear of accusations of improper behavior.

A) Ferguson effect
B) CSI effect
C) "Me Too" movement
D) obligatory corruption

Question 20

Which of the following is not a form of hedonistic corruption?

A) Meting out justice via violations of the Constitution
B) Accepting a gratuity
C) Stealing from a crime scene
D) Sexual misconduct with a woman stopped for a traffic offense
/False

Question 21

Aristotle stated that to actualize the soul of any public organization, it is necessary to have both a moral virtue and an intellectual virtue.

Question 22

Broader perspectives of police corruption align more with legal definitions of the behavior.

Question 23

A national study found that during 2005-2007 almost 400 police officers were arrested for sex-related crimes.

Question 24

Hedonistic corruption refers to purposefully not following departmental rules and regulations during the performance of normal duties.

Question 25

A commitment to legality is what separates democratic governments from totalitarian ones.

Question 26

Blacks and whites have very similar rates of use of marijuana but police disproportionately target blacks with arrests.

Question 27

Administrative approaches to combatting corruption are the best way to correct officer behavior.

Question 28

The President's Task Force on 21^st Century Policing concluded that procedural justice and community policing are the two fundamental pillars that support policing.

Question 29

When conducted on the basis of reasonable suspicion, stop and frisks are a violation of the constitution.

Question 30

One criticism of asset forfeiture is that it leads police to focus on drug crimes and ignore issues such as domestic violence.

Question 31

This chapter discussed in some detail the police prerogative to abuse power. Within that section, concerns pertinent to a lack of trust by citizens were addressed. Do you believe fear of police abusing power differs between those who have been justice-involved (e.g., arrested, pulled over, etc.) and those who have not? Why or why not? Be sure to mention how there may be a difference in the type of fear (e.g., escape vs. anticipatory fear) experienced based on whether one's encounters with police were negative or positive.

Question 32

Terry v. Ohio (1968) established precedent which validated the use of stop-and-frisk by police. Research indicates that widespread usage of these stops results in aggressive policing styles fraught with Constitutional violations. However, in the process, drugs and guns are taken off the street. Considering this, do you believe there is a place for stop-and-frisk in policing and, if so, what can be done to utilize the practice within the bounds of democratic principles? Explain.

Question 33

Provide an argument for or against the acceptance of gratuities by police being the beginning of a "slippery slope of moral career." Put another way, do you believe the acceptance of gratuities, like free meals or coffee, leads to participating in more serious forms of corruption like theft of cash or other goods? Explain why or why not.

Question 34

One topic of contention in policing ethics is the use of deception. What are the benefits and drawbacks of using deception to obtain a confession or other information? Does the adjudicatory stage (i.e., investigatory, interrogation, or testimony) during which police employ the tactic really matter? Why or why not?

Question 35

Should police departments continue to pursue the "war on drugs?" Why or why not? What might be an alternative approach to addressing the problems of drug use and drug abuse?